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Employees' Generosity Shines During Holidays

(top) “Movember,” a combination of “moustache” and “November,” is the word for annual November events to grow (or in this case, wear) moustaches to raise awareness for men’s health issues such as prostate cancer. In three years of fund-raising events, the PNR RailWorks Guelph, ON, Track and Signals & Communications (S&C) offices have raised more than $10,000. (slide show) (1) Scott Brace, president of RailWorks Track Systems, rang a bell to collect donations for the Salvation Army on Christmas Eve, while Margaret Talafous, Hal Harrison, Laura Wadding and David Grun sang Christmas carols.(2) Employees and their families from the Central Region in Lakeville, MN, volunteered at Feed My Starving Children (FMSC). (3) HR Specialist Danielle Kandybowicz and Assistant Controller Chris Coleman show off toys donated by employees at RailWorks Corporation's corporate office in New York donated to Toys for Tots, the annual U.S. Marine Corps Reserve toy collection and distribution campaign.

Throughout RailWorks’ offices in North America, there were examples of holiday spirit , good cheer and generosity.

The RailWorks corporate office in New York, NY, continued what has become an annual tradition: donating to Toys for Tots, the U.S. Marine Corps Reserve toy collection and distribution campaign.

Coordinator Kristen Manganaro of Human Resources estimates the company collected about 200 toys (coupled with $500 for the purchase of additional toys) in the three years that she has coordinated the effort.

“The way a child’s face lights up when they see their gifts is, in my opinion, what the holidays are all about,” she says. “Although, unfortunately, we can’t ensure that every child gets a Christmas, we can do our part to help a few more around the city experience the excitement of the season.”

Toys for Tots donations are collected and distributed locally.

At the RailWorks Track System's Central Region office in Lakeville, MN, another swarm of volunteers is giving their time to provide nutrition worldwide.

Each year, often around their annual holiday party, Lakeville employees and their families volunteer at Feed My Starving Children (FMSC) to assemble packets of food product specifically formulated for malnourished children. Twenty-two employees and spouses have volunteered to go on Dec. 23 to an FMSC packing center in nearby Eagan to assemble as many meal packets as they can in a couple of hours.

“This is our seventh year volunteering with FMSC at the holiday celebration,” says coordinator Michelle Johnson. The group also responds when FMSC reaches out to fill shifts. “We’ve volunteered twice at other times depending on their need, and our time.”

Employees also were in the holiday spirit with late-December shoppers at an area Walmart store.

Scott Brace, the president of RailWorks Track Systems, rang a bell to collect donations for the Salvation Army, while Margaret Talafous, Hal Harrison, Laura Wadding and David Grun sang Christmas carols.

The holiday parties can also be a key cog in the philanthropic wheel. At PNR RailWorks’ Abbotsford, BC, holiday party held on December 12, employees raised money for the Abbotsford Food Bank. It’s something they’ve done annually for 10 years now.

This year, employees donated more than $1,200. Pacific Region Manager Al Schroeder says the Abbotsford office has collected more than $11,000 in 10 years of contributions.

“The fundraising was a total success,” notes Al. “Everyone was excited to contribute, and we surpassed our previous contributions. We started to get everyone in the holiday spirit by having each table ‘build their own snowman.’ This was a great success and got everyone excited about the rest of the night.”